Sibir off the bottom, Loko back on top. October 29 round-up

A 5-2 win over Metallurg moved Sibir off the  foot of the Eastern Conference and handed Konstantin Shafranov his first loss as Magnitogorsk’s head coach. In the West, Lokomotiv returned to the summit thanks to a 6-2 success over Sochi. And there was late drama in Nizhnekamsk, where Vladislav Tsitsyura’s goal with nine seconds to play secured a 4-3 win for Admiral. Elsewhere, the action went beyond 60 minutes: Avtomobilist blew a 2-0 lead before beating Torpedo in a shoot-out; Severstal tied its game with Spartak 14 seconds from time and won it in another shoot-out.

Shafranov suffers first loss with Metallurg

Sibir Novosibirsk 5 Metallurg Magnitogorsk 2 (1-0, 3-1, 1-1)

Less than a week ago, Konstantin Shafranov celebrated victory over Sibir in his first game as Metallurg’s head coach. Today he suffered his first loss behind the bench, with the home team moving off the foot of the Eastern Conference thanks to victory over the KHL’s overall leader.

There was a notable new face on the Sibir roster: 17-year-old forward Ivan Ryabov made his KHL debut and, when he stepped on the ice for the first time in the fourth minute, became the sixth player born in 2009 to feature this season. Only Vladimir Tarasenko has played for the club at a younger age.

Sibir dominated the first period. It took almost 10 minutes for Metallurg to get a shot on goal, and by the intermission the home team was up 21-4 in shots. But there was just one goal to show for those efforts: ex-Metallurg man Pavel Tyutnev, used sparingly during his time in Magnitogorsk, scored his fifth goal of the season to separate the teams after 20 minutes.

Metallurg started the second period on the PK, but quickly gained the initiative once back at equal strength. Nathan Todd dinged the iron, then Nikita Korotkov tied the game with a timely redirect to score on his hometown team.

However, for all the visitor’s efforts, Sibir recovered and built a lead. Sergei Popov won a foot race against Danila Palivko on his way to restoring the advantage. Then Alexander Mirzabalayev, who played alongside Tyutnev in the VHL last season, scored twice on his former club – perhaps highlighting a talent Metallurg missed out on.

The teams traded goals in the third: Sergei Tolchinsky pulled one back for Metallurg before Anton Kosolapov’s empty-netter made the final score 5-2 for Sibir.

Torpedo fightback falls short

Avtomobilist Yekaterinburg 3 Torpedo Nizhny Novgorod 2 SO (2-0, 0-1, 0-1, 0-0, 1-0)

The Motormen blew a 2-0 lead at home to Torpedo, but recovered to win the game in a shoot-out. That maintained Avtomobilist’s unbeaten start in the First Teams’ Cup, and stretched the winning run to four games.

Torpedo, fuelled by a last-gasp win at SKA on Tuesday, made a bright start. However, the opening goal came at the other end from pretty much the first opportunity for the home team. Maxim Tarasov stripped Yaroslav Dyblenko of the puck and raced from his own blue line to score.

However, that was not a trigger to more action: much of the play was tied down in center ice and scoring chances were scarce. A second goal came on another breakaway, when Alexander Kadeikin had an interception in a similar spot and launched another counter; Daniel Sprong joined the rush and his shot bounced back to Kadeikin to make it 2-0.

Adam Ruzicka missed a great chance for a third goal at the start of the final frame, and Sprong also went close. Had either of those chances found the target, the host might have enjoyed a more peaceful evening. Instead, Torpedo stepped up its offense. Evgeny Alikin made a big save to deny Yegor Vinogradov after a defense-splitting pass from Vladimir Tkachyov, but when the same players crossed paths again moments later the visiting forward won the duel to halve the deficit.

Alikin remained busy in the latter half of the second period as Torpedo peppered him with shots, although Ruzicka had another good chance at the other end before the intermission.

At the start of the third, Avto seemed to decide that offense was the better form of defense. However, Torpedo stood firm and steadily moved play away from its net. A stretch pass from Matvei Polyakov released Sergei Goncharuk and he tied the game in the 45th minute. Once level, the visitor took control and looked the more likely winner in regulation, but Alikin remained on top of his game to drag the action into overtime.

In the extras, Avtomobilist had much more of the puck and created a clear cut chance to win it. Instead, the home team went to its first shoot-out of the season and came out on top thanks to Jordan Gross, who was the only player to score in six attempts.

Defending champ halts Sochi’s hot streak

Lokomotiv Yaroslavl 6 HC Sochi 2 (1-0, 3-2, 2-0)

Three straight wins lifted Sochi off the foot of the KHL standings and changed the mood around the Leopards’ camp. But a trip to defending champion Lokomotiv proved a step too far for the Black Sea boys.

Although Nikita Gusev extended his productive streak to seven games (0+8), the visitor struggled to trouble a Lokomotiv team that returned to the Western summit with a fourth win in five games.

The home team got in front in the eighth minute through Alexei Bereglazov. Then came a major penalty for Viktor Baldayev, ejected from the game in the 15th minute, but no further scoring in the first. Lokomotiv doubled its lead at the start of the middle frame when Giovanni Fiore potted his fifth of the season.

At the other end, Gusev combined with Matvei Guskov to create a goal in reply for Yaroslav Belyakov. The 20-year-old defenseman got his first KHL marker. But Loko responded with two goals in two minutes: Matvei Kotkov made it 3-1, then Kirill Yemelyanov added a fourth on the power play. The 19-year-old also opened his KHL account in his 10th game for the first team.

Just before the second intermission, Sochi pulled one back thanks to Artur Gizdatullin. That play was notable for an assist from Denis Vengryzhanovsky, who had previously potted 10 goals without a helper this season.

Thus encouraged, Sochi made a lively start in the final frame and goalie Alexei Melnichuk was called into action several times. Lokomotiv did not seek to force the pace, and calmly waited for Sochi’s storm to blow itself out before putting the result beyond date. Yemelyanov got his second of the night on a counterattack, and Kotkov also completed a double late in the game. Once up 6-2, Lokomotiv gave rookie goalie Yakov Kazantsev a few minutes in the closing stages of the game.

Kaldis goal denies Spartak at the death

Severstal Cherepovets 3 Spartak Moscow 2 SO (1-1, 0-1, 1-0, 0-0, 1-0)

The home team snapped a three-game skid – but only after a tying goal 14 seconds before the hooter. Yanni Kaldis saved Severstal from defeat, and the shoot-out saw Spartak suffer a second successive loss.

In the first period, the teams traded quick goals. Will Reilly put Spartak in front in the fifth minute. He benefitted from some fortune, with his shot from the right deflected off David Dumbadze and Vladimir Grudinin on its way into the net.

But Dumbadze quickly recovered from that disappointment to tie the game in the seventh minute. He burst down the left wing, overcame Christian Jaros rather too easily, and fired past Artyom Zagidullin from an acute angle.

The opening frame was also characterized by frequent penalties, but neither team could find its way in front before the intermission.

After a lively opening frame, the second period was slower to take flight. The teams managed just three shots between them in the first seven minutes. Gradually, the pace heated up and Spartak got in front in the 34th minute on a well-worked play that ended with Ivan Ryabov converting a no-look pass from Max Comtois.

Spartak looked for more goals in the third period, perhaps sensing that one would not be enough to secure the win. That made for an end-to-end contest with chances for both teams. Two minutes from time, Severstal brought on a sixth skater and, with time ticking down, Kaldis delivered a dramatic tying goal.

And his team-mates took full value from that tally, navigating their way to a shoot-out where Ilya Ivantsov settled the outcome. But there’s no time to rest on those laurels: the teams meet again in Cherepovets tomorrow.

Tsitsyura snatches winner

Neftekhimik Nizhnekamsk 3 Admiral Vladivostok 4 (0-2, 3-1, 0-1)

There was another dramatic finish in Tatarstan, where Admiral grabbed victory with just nine seconds to play. Vladislav Tsitsyura’s power play goal snapped a 3-3 tie and improved the Sailors to four wins from five.

Two quick goals at the start of the first period put Admiral in control of this game early on. Ivan Muranov followed his goal in the previous game at Lada with the opener here on 3:24. Then came a short-handed tally from Alexander Volkov 90 seconds later, making it 2-0.

However, Neftekhimik then took complete control of the game, and finished with a 21-8 lead in shots in the first period, despite trailing by two.

Part of that dominance stemmed from a major penalty for Admiral’s Anthony Camara in the 17th minute. The power play carried on into the second period, and Rafael Bikmullin took advantage to halve the deficit. Then came German Tochilkin to tie the game after 25 minutes.

Admiral might have feared the game was getting away, but a penalty for Artur Tyanulin a minute after Tochilkin’s goal allowed the Sailors to regain a measure of control. Another power play saw the visitor back in front: Ilya Morozov on target in the 33rd minute. But an entertaining game had another twist before the intermission and Matvei Nadvorny tied it up.

In the final frame, Neftekhimik edged the play but could not find a way to get in front for the first time in the game. And, in the last minute, home captain and leading scorer Andrei Belozyorov got a penalty and Tsitsyura snatched a last-gasp winner for Admiral.